Jim Ward, a prolific voice actor known for the “The Fairly OddParents” and nearly 200 video games, has died at age 66.
The New York City native died Wednesday morning due to complications from advanced Alzheimer’s disease, his wife, Janice, told TMZ.
Ward’s death was first made public in a social media post shared by syndicated talk radio host Stephanie Miller. Ward co-hosted “The Stephanie Miller Show,” heard daily on Sirius XM’s Progress channel, and served as its announcer for 13 years until 2017.
“One of the saddest messages I have ever received from the amazing Mrs. Jim Ward: Our wonderful ‘voice deity,’ as Steph anointed Jim Ward, passed away today at 10:45 a.m.,” Miller posted on Instagram Wednesday afternoon. “He was beyond brilliance.”
In a statement to Deadline, Ward’s longtime representative, Arlene Thornton, praised his “ability to improvise on the spot as well as his dead-on impressions.”
“He was a one-man comedy show every time he came to the office to do his auditions,” she said. “We will miss him dearly and we will never forget the joy he brought to our lives on a daily basis.”
With a career that spanned four decades, Ward was celebrated for his television work — winning a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Performer in an Animated Program for the “Biker Mice from Mars” in 2009.
He was best known for appearing in all 10 seasons of the Nickelodeon animated series “The Fairly OddParents,” voicing numerous characters including business owner Doug Dimmadome and local news reporter Chet Ubetcha.
He also voiced various characters on Cartoon Network’s “Ben 10” and Marvel’s 2008 animated series “Wolverine and the X-Men,” in addition to playing the role of Captain Qwark in PlayStation’s “Ratchet & Clank” video game series.
Ward’s other video game credits include his 1993 debut in “Spider-Man vs. The Kingpin,” as well as several “Star Wars,” “Resident Evil” and “Call of Duty” games.
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